The Nest
by MobiBlue
Summary: A collection of stories from a AU where nineteen-year-old Sara is the single mom of the Legends. It's her job to make sure everyone is clothed, fed, and not set on fire. Can she make it?
1. Good Morning

EETT! EETT! EETT!

Sara sleepily reached for her alarm but beeps. Shifting in her sheets she grabbed the noisy box and chucked it across the room with all the strength she could muster at this ungodly hour of the morning. With a loud crash, her alarm's reign of terror ended. Relived Sara retreated into the warmth of her blankets. Her eyes gently closing, her brain fading into the quiet peace of sleep. But it was ripped away from her by a small stirring of a warm body beside her. missed. It responded with a barrage of even louder

"I think you broke it," a small voice yawned. Moving to an upright position, Sara turned to the small boy. Wally laid next to her, in his bright yellow race car pajamas. Brown hair ruffled, still clutching his bear.

"Hey honey, forgot you snuck in last night," She said with a lazy smile. Even though Wally had only been part of her chaotic family for a few months, Sara could hardly even imagine a world without her little guy. She softly straitened his messy hair causing him to squirm.

"I couldn't sleep I was too excited!" Wally piped up. He had been raving about his first day of kindergarten for some time now. It seemed like the only thing that five-year-old would ever talk about. Much to the disapproval of her nerves, Sara swung her feet to the cold floor.

"I guess we better go wake up the others," said Sara as he placed the small boy on her hip. In a zombie like state she made her way to the first door in the hallway. Loudly she knocked on the wood. And to no one's surprise there was no answer. Sara gave a drawn-out sigh, sometimes it felt like Mick's only goal in life was to make hers harder. The now freshman never got up without a fight (which he was very good at starting). Puls the fact that things 'accidently' got set on fire around him was always such a joy to Sara's day.

"Mick, if you are not up and dressed in ten minutes you are eating a knuckle sandwich for breakfast!" Sara warned much to Wally's amusement. This time a low guttural sound came from the other side. Satisfied with her work Sara moved to the next door.

"Time to get up for school, you two," She whispered. But to her surprise she only saw Amaya sitting up in bed rubbing her eyes.

"Where's Zari?"

"No idea, she got up a while ago," the thirteen-year-old shrugged hoping over a pile of Zari's stuff. The girls' room was a clash of two worlds, cute animal posters next to punk rock bands. One half pristine and color coded, the other looked like it was hit by hurricane Katrina. Amaya grabbed a leopard print shirt and rushed past Sara to the bathroom before anyone could take her first shower.

With a roll of her eyes Sara strolled to the last room in the hallway. She gave a quick knock in-between the Camelot sign and the Lost Temple one. Hearing a mumbled response Sara pushed open the door to the boys' room. Toys were scattered across the carpet, a pile of books accumulated in a far corner, and a box of unattended crayons sat next to some doodles on the desk. Settling Wally down, Sara reached up to the top bunk and shook Ray's shoulder.

"Time to get ready for your big day,"

Slowly his bight brown eyes opened, quickly followed by his goofy smile. She smiled lightly back and ruffled her little man's hair.

"Good morning, Sara!" Ray said under his Star Trek blankets. Bellow her Sara head Nate untangle himself from his cowboy sheets.

"Hey, Wally," he yawned before tripping over an Han Solo action figure with a loud crash. Surprised by the loud noise Sara leaped to Nate's side. She pulled him to his feet, looking franticly for any cuts or bruises.

"Sara, I'm fine," he said annoyed. Even though Nate was only a year younger than Ray, Sara couldn't stop herself from babying him. She just kept worrying about how fragile his hemiopia made him. Sara tried to treat him like the others, but she had no idea how to be the 'mom' of a kid like him. Regaining herself Sara stood back up.

"Well, breakfast is in a few, so get ready and downstairs," she ordered. With a grin Nate rushed to the closet and grabbed his new Indiana Jones backpack. Ray jumped off the top bunk and began to gather his things from the floor. Seeing that Wally was content playing with one of the boys' foam swords, Sara headed to the kitchen.

"I don't believe this are free-range organic eggs, Sara," accused Zari as Sara stepped down the stairs. Zari seemed to always be going through a new phase. First it was heavy metal, then it was gothic clothing, now it was some sort of health kick. Sara usually just went with it, but this was getting ridiculous.

"No, they're not, we don't have the money to buy that hippie crap,"

Like the sixteen-year-old she was Zari groaned then engrossed herself in her phone. With the false belief that a warm cup of coffee would fix all her problems, Sara poured herself a cup of liquid energy. The bold taste and heavenly aroma stirred her brain from its slumber.

"Can you pass me the milk?"

Amaya made herself a bowl of cheerios and sat down at the table crunching quietly. Zari looked up from her phone.

"Do you know how many artificial sweeteners are in those?"

"Seriously Z, who cares?" Amaya scoffed.

"Well, don't come crying to me when you start growing a third eye!"

"That's not how it works, Zari!" Exclaimed Amaya throwing her hands in the air. Zari was about to reply when feet rumbled down the stairs.

"Captain America is way better than Ironman!" Nate said enthusiastically. Much to his best friend's disapproval.

"How so?" Ray said rolling his eyes.

"He has superpowers!"

"Ironman's so cool, he doesn't need superpowers. He made his own awesome supersuit!"

Sara gave the two of them a stern glare. Which quickly ended the discussion. The two boys gave a shrug and moved to fighting over who ate the last of the frosted flakes. With another sip of her coffee Sara gave up trying. Suddenly she felt a sharp whack on her thigh, causing her to almost spill her coffee. Wally gave her a sheepish grin, still holding the foam sword.

"We're done with that," said Sara unamused. She took the toy from his hands and placed it on a high shelf. Wally just gave her a pout and climbed into a chair. Ray poured himself and Wally a bowl of Applejacks then asked,

"Where's Mick?"

"I'm up," He grumbled coming down the stairs. His red hair was sticking up everywhere, shirt was wrinkly, and was only wearing one sock, but at least he was up. Last year Sara had to literally drag him out of bed, so this was a win in her book. Checking her watch Zari started head for the door,

"Come on guys we gott-" She started up.

"Let me drive you this time," Sara interrupted. She received confused looks from across the room. The kids had always ridden the bus, because they only own one car.

"Won't you be late to work?" Asked a concerned Amaya.

"It's no big deal I already called in late because I have to drop off Wally later,"

"Or we could stay home?" Mick suggested hopefully.

"Not a chance, get in car," replied their driver. With a few complaints and more than a few calls for shotgun they filed toward the Van. Mick headed for the passenger seat but was cut off by Zari.

"Sorry, but I called shotgun fair and square, hothead,"

"Bite me," Mick growled getting into the middle row. Sara watched as Amaya booted Ray to the back seat to sit with Nate. Between herself and Mick, Amaya buckled Wally into his car seat. Now fully awake Sara turned back in the driver's seat.

"Everyone ready?"

A few excited cheers came from the backmost seat, and a loud no from Mick. Pulling the van out of the driveway Sara turned on the radio. Which for once was the only sound in the unusually quiet car. But that ended when she pulled into the elementary school drop off.

"Wait! Nate do you have your doctor's note?" Sara asked as the boys got out of the car. Nate didn't hear her and headed inside. A mom gave Sara a judging look from across the parking lot. She got that often, many of the parents didn't understand how a nineteen-year-old became a mother of six almost overnight. And most of them thought of her as an irrespirable parent. And maybe she was, Sara had no idea how to be a Mom, especially troubled kids like these.

She thought about this as she dropped off Mick and Zari at the high school. Ever since Rip disappeared two years ago, Sara was left in charge of a family she never asked for. But she couldn't let them go back into the foster system. But was this really the best place for them. There would always be something missing from their lives, something that she couldn't give them. And no matter how hard she tried Sara would never be their Mom.

"You really don't have to walk in inside," Amaya broke Sara's train of thought.

"I have to talk to the principal anyway, so I decided why not," Sara admitted as they walked toward the middle school. Around her kids were meeting with their friends and goofing off. A lanky nerdy looking boy waved to Amaya. He had bright eyes like Ray's and curly black hair. And to her surprise he was talking to a woman about her age.

"Who's that?" Sara asked.

"It's just Garry one of my classmates," She shrugged, "I got to go the bell gonna ring soon,"

And just like that Amaya disappeared into the crowd chatting with that Garry kid. Sara was about to head back to the car when she almost ran into the woman with Garry.

"Sorry I wasn't looking were I was going," The woman said blushing. Sara gave a chuckle and outstretched her arm.

"No big deal, I'm Sara. Amaya's guardian,"

"I'm Ava," She said shaking Sara's hand.

"So, you're Garry's mom, I think he's friends with Amaya, but I can never be sure. She never tells me anything," Sara said trying to make small talk. Ava turned red again.

"No, I'm not his Mom, he's my cousin. He couldn't live with his parents, so I took him in," She explained quickly. That was a coincidence. But it also explained why she looked so young.

"I know how you fell, I have six. And none of them are mine,"

"Really?"

"It's a long story. And sometimes I wonder if I can really give them the home they need," Sara admitted.

"Well, if your family thinks of you as highly as Amaya does I don't think you'll have to worry," Ava laughed.

"What do you mean?"

"Amaya talks about you all the time, or at least that's what Garry tells me," Said Ava, "And from what I heard you have quite the family to be thankful of,"

"Ya, I guess they're quite something," Sara said mostly to herself a smile lingering on her lips.

* * *

 **Thank you for reading my first ever Fic! If you have any suggestions for a story you would want to see with these characters just leave it in a review and I will write it! :D**


	2. The Call

Sara carefully ran her finger along with the edge of the knife, it was slightly dull but otherwise in good condition. She balanced it in her fingers, the center of gravity was perfect. Caressing the ivory handle, she passed the hunting knife to it's proper owner.

"You could get about hm...three to four hundred for this," She told the man. He had came into the sporting goods store with a family heirloom. And Sara's position was knife specialist so it was her job to look it over. Knives started out as just a hobby but now it was her profession.

"Thanks, I don't know a lot about weapons," he admitted. Sara was about to reply when she was cut off by the intercom.

"Sara Hunter, would you please report to the front desk, you have a phone call," it crackled. Slipping away from the costumer, Sara knew exactly what it was. Calls where often and seemed to always happen when she was at work. She even had two last week. The the real question in her head was who.

"It's the school," Janet said just out of habit. With an annoyed sigh Sara put her ear to the receiver.

"Hello?"

"Is this Miss Hunter?" A female voice asked from the other side.

"In the flesh,"

"I'm calling to inform you of a fight betw-"

"Let me guess, It was Mick," Sara interrupted sarcastically.

"No Mick was not involved," the voice corrected. That was odd, who else could it be? Possibly Zari, but fist fights weren't her style.

"If you would give me a chance to speak,I would tell you that Ray is the one with a three day suspension this time," the voice continued obviously peeved at Sara.

"Are you sure?" Asked a very confused Sara. Ray wasn't a fighter, he barely even tries to stand up for himself. Her little man was always the first to roll over and show his belly.

"Yes, I'm absolutely sure that Ray Hunter punched Max Hill,"

Max was a little brat. He had been picking on Ray and Nate for years. But nothing violent ever came out of it.

"Okay, I'll be over in a few," said Sara as she hung up. Turning to Janet, she saw that she was already punched out.

"Thanks Jan, I'll see you tomorrow," Sara waved as she walked to her car. Janet only noded before getting back to work.

When Sara walked into the familiar school office the first thing she noticed were the two boys sitting on a bench outside the principal's. Ray held a tissue to his bloody nose, and looked at his shoes with shame. Beside him that little punk lounged smugly in his chair, only the purplish bruise on his cheek ruined his bravo. Seeing her, Max gave Ray a sharp elbow and muttered something. As Ray looked up Sara spotted a large ugly bruise on his left eye.

"Sorry..." He mumbled quietly, his eyes starting to tear up. Sara went to go talk to him but, she was pulled away by Principal Kimball. He ushered her into his office and sat in a swivel chair.

"What happened?" Sara asked taking a seat. This wasent her first time in this office and it certainly won't be her last. She was on a first name basis with the police officer assigned to the school, mostly explaining to him why her 'son' started a brush fire.

"At recess Ray and Max were having some sort of conversation. We still don't know what they were talking about, they refuse to tell us. The conversation escalated until Ray flat out punched Max. Max punched back, until it was broken up," Kimball explained with wide hand motions.

"So Ray threw the first punch?" Sara asked in disbelief. Ray had never been violent before, this wasn't his first time being bullied either. He always just took the insults and the punches.

"Yes, most of the playground saw it,"

Sara let out a tired sigh and rubbed her eyes. She whished Rip would come back, he always knew what to do.

"He's going to be suspended isn't he?"

"I'm sorry, but rules are rules," he shrugged. She stood and headed for the door. There was nothing left to discuss.

"Just between you and me, Ray is a good kid. And I don't think he was unprovoked, he just won't tell us why," He said sincerly.

"Thank you," She replied solfly walking back into the main office. Ray hadn't moved but, Max's mom was there. She lightly toughed the bruise on her son's cheek, then shot Sara a venomous look. Taking her son's hand, she stormed away.

"People like that are not fit for children, you hear me?" She whispered to Max as she walked past Sara. Mrs Hill, was one of the parents that disapproved of Sara's odd family. She believed that the kids were better suited in the foster system(or jail). Sara just ignored her like she always did.

"Hey buddy, are you ready to head home," she said to get Ray's attention. He looked up with puffy eyes and hooded.

"Okay..." He replied quietly. His nose had stopped bleeding but dried blood covered his face. Sara had no idea how to handle this! Should she press harder or let it go, should she ground him or give him a pat on the back? I guess she would just have to take it one step at a time.

The car ride was a quiet one, Ray sat in the front seat starring at passing trees. Sara could see his frowning face in the reflection. He just looked so, upset that it broke Sara's heart.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" She asked uncomfortably. He looked at her for a second then turned back to the window.

"No," Replied his voice back to his normal volume but, still missing his joyfully tone. Letting it go, Sara turned her attention back to the road. Isn't that what kids want, space? She pulled into the driveway and parked the car. 12:16 PM, so she had a few hours before the others would be home.

Sara grabbed a towel and ran it under warm water, once the soggy towel was soft to the touch and pleasantly warm she handed to the bloody boy. Carefully he scrubbed of the red scabs and dirt. Accidentally he touched his left eye causing him to flinch. It was now a blueish purple, and starting to swell close.

"Here, I'll get some ice, baby," Sara offered, rummaging through the freezer. But there was no icepacks to be found, not even frozen peas. She had cold pizza, orange creamcycle icecream, and a bag of frozen raw chicken. Without any better options she handed him the chicken. A small giggle escaped Ray's lips as he put the odd bag to his eye.

Suddenly Sara reilised her mistake, she had been trying to handle this like a Mom. But to Ray she wasent his Mother. She was a good friend, always some one he could trust, or some one to play dinosaurs with, they had lived together since Rip was here. She wasn't his mom, she was his big sister.

Sitting at the table Ray fidgeted with the chicken, it certainly was helping but a bit awkward to hold. Sara sat next to him and placed something heavy on the table. Looking up, he saw the tub of orange icecream. Sara smiled at Ray and passed a spoon.

"Promise not to tell?" She winked. He replied with enthuastic nods, digging his spoon straight into the tub. Laughing Sara joined him. They ate for a while in happy silence until Sara spoke up,

"So, what did Max say?"

"It was nothing," Ray defended. His eyes drooping to the floor.

"Ray, I know you wouldn't have hit him without a good reason," Sara probed. For a cupple moments he looked down at the grownd nervously. As if he wanted to say something but couldn't find the words. Suddenly he burst into tears.

"He wouldn't stop. He just kept on saying mean things about you and the others! He called our family trash and disfunctional. Then he claimed that we were byproducts of a ruined system. I just wanted him to stop, I don't know what came over me," He sobbed, salty tears running down his cheeks.

His sobbing mellowed out as he felt Sara's comforting arms around him. She held him close and started to rock him back and fourth.

"Honey, it's okay. Shhh, Shhh. It's hard for people understand what we have. And people hate what they can't understand, it's has always been this way and always will be. But that doesn't make them right. Sometimes people are cruel, but you don't have to be. Just take all their hatered and bounce back forgiveness. That's how you change minds and open hearts, sweetie,"

Ray wiped his eyes and looked up. His expression looked lighter like a weight was lifted off this back.

"I think I understand," he said quietly. Sara ran her fingers through his black hair and smiled,

"Well, that's all anyone could ask for. Now let's finish off this icecream,"

 **thank you for reading my second story, if you have any suggestions on how to improve, or just an idea for a story in this arc, leave it in a review! :D**


	3. Movie Night Gone Wrong

**I'm sorry for how long this took to get posted. I have been having technical difficulties and was traveling. Anyway, thank you to all the great people following this fic! And special thanks to bondi98 for telling me about the incorrect formatting. Thanks msue for the support! Enjoy part 3. :D  
**

* * *

The Fellowship leaped across the falling bridge. With Aragorn throwing the hobbits across. He moved to throw Gimly but, the dwarf refused.

"No one throws a dwarf!" He shouted before leaping across. One by one the group crossed until only Aragorn was left. But to his dismay the gap was widening. As of the section of bridge tell away he jumped. The ranger almost fell short but was hauled up with the help of his friends.

Sara shielded Wally's eyes as Legolas skewered an orc. Maybe Lord of The Rings wasn't the best family movie night. But, it was Mick's turn choose. And for once, the weekly movie went unprotested, the boys were more than happy about it. They laid on the floor surrounded by a mountain of blankets, eyes bright with excitement.

Amaya wasn't sure about it at first but, that didn't matter anyway. Like always she fell asleep midway through the film, head resting on Mick's shoulder. He on the other hand, watched the screen intently.

Wally squirmed Sara's hand away, almost kicking the sleeping Amaya awake. Slightly frustrated, he switched position on Sara's lap.

"Hey, I wanna see what's happening, " the five-year-old whined. She just shrugged and patted his head. Popcorn would make him feel better, Zari was almost done. Sara's mouth was already watering form the heavenly aroma. Wally didn't notice, he was too engrossed watching Gandalf turn to face the fire demon.

Dramatically, the wizard plunged his staff into the stone destabilizing the bridge. It crumbled beneath the demon, sending him down into the void. But just as Gandalf turns around, the demon grabs him with his whip. Then everything went black. The lights went out, along with the TV.

A startled yelp came from the blackness where the boys where, in front of Sara. Behind her she heard a loud crash and the sound of breaking glass. Wally grasped her shirt,

"Sara! Sara!" He cried in fear. Automatically, she pulled him closer to her chest and made calming noises. It took her a second to put together what had happened. The power had gone out. Strange, there wasn't even a gust of wind outside.

"Z, are you okay?"

"It's nothing, I just broke a glass bowl," A voice replied form the inky black.

"Wait there, don't move," Sara ordered, moving to get up. She knew Zari could handle it, but there was still the feeling in her gut telling her to protect her family.

"I'm sixteen not six; I can take care of this," Zari snorted from the kitchen. Sara was about to get up when she heard a small whimpering. Wally was still clutching her, on the verge of tears, terrified of the sudden dark.

"I'll take him," said Amaya who must have been awoken by the crash. She gently took Wally from Sara's arms, and began to rock him back and forth. In the low light Sara saw his face relax. With a hand on the sofa for stability, she made her way to the kitchen. Behind her Sara saw eyes curiously watching, hers must have been adjusting to the darkness.

A sharp pain shot up through Sara's bare foot. She grabbed her knee and stumbled back into the sofa. Hot tears blurred her vision.

"Fu-" Midway through her exclamation, Sara saw one pair of eyes glistening with mischievous delight.

"-ge" She concluded quickly much to Mick's disapproval. Bending down, she discovered a single Lego, lodged in her poor foot. With a growl Sara, put it in her pocket.

"Boys, how many time have I told you to pick your toys?" She sighed. Her eyes locked on to the silhouettes of the guilty parties.

"Wasn't me!" Ray and Nate protested simultaneously. Sara, didn't have the time for this, she had to help Zari. When she turned to the kitchen, Sara saw a million little shards twinkling in the moonlight. In-between the glittering glass, she saw kernels of popcorn like snow. Zari was across the sea of sharp points sweeping them up with a broom.

"I told to stand back," Sara scolded. The teenager only shrugged. Picking up to scattered popcorn Sara, let it go. She scooped up the large kernels in her hand then dropped them into the trash, making sure not to touch the blades of glass. Soon with Zari's help, it was almost completely taken care of. But, then she heard a sharp yelp.

Whirling around, Sara saw her oldest clutching a bleeding hand. Zari's face twisted with pain and let out a little moan. Jumping over the leftover shards, Sara inspected the cut hand. It was hard to see in the low light, but there was defiantly dark blood seeping from the wound. Sara moved Zari's hand to the sink and twisted the handle. But nothing came out.

"Dang it, stay here," Sara instructed. She moved to the cabinets searching for a water bottle. Man, some of this stuff expired years ago. It took her a while but, she found a bottle hiding behind leftover supplies from camping last summer.

"Is she okay?" A young voice asked, causing Sara to jump. The boys were standing at the edge of the kitchen looking in with concern. She gave them a stern glare,

"You two get out of here, especially you Nate," Sara warned. The last thing she needed how was a trip to the ER. Nate glared back, angered by his guardian's chiding. The boy opened his mouth to say something but was cut off.

"Haircut, Pretty, let's go find some flashlights," Mick jumped in, sensing the need to defuse the situation. Ray came happily, but Nate still seemed to be a little peeved. He hated when Sara brought up his

disability, all he ever wanted was to be normal. It was a button that Sara couldn't help but pressing. She would have to talk to him later but, Zari had to be taken care of.

The teenager flinched as the water poured over her wound. Streaks of red swirled into the drain. Now revealed, her cut was more manageable. A thin but deep scratch. All it needed was some gauze. Which luckily was kept in a first aid kit under the sink.

"Thanks," Zari replied quietly. She had spent most of her life taking care herself, and often had trouble accepting help. Mostly she tried to be tough and work through it on her own. But, that can only get you so far.

Sara smiled back and gave her a small hug. In the living room it was surprisingly quiet. Amaya was gazing out the window pointing out constellations to Wally. Amazed, he would trace new ones with his finger. Sara took a glance outside herself, it was breathtaking. A million diamonds glistening in the dark. It was really a sight without the usual lights blocking them out.

"Man, I haven't seen this many stars in forever," Sara mused over Amaya's shoulder. The girl turned back and smiled,

"Imagine how many we could see outside?"

"Why not?" Sara replied to the middle schooler's surprise. But, it wasn't a bad idea, they had nothing to do in here.

So, the strange family found themselves in the backyard, staring up at the heavens. Sitting on the damp grass. It was eerily quiet except for the occasional hoot of an owl. A chill nipped at Sara's nose, but she didn't care. How had they missed all of this before? It seems like everyone in world just forgets to take a break. Like, the stars are there but just forgotten. She just always seemed so busy and seemed to forget all the beauty around her.

Mick looked up and shrugged,

"This is pretty cool, I guess,"


	4. Roll of the Dice

"Hey Sara? Can I hang out at a friend's after school tomorrow?" Amaya asked. This caught Sara off-guard, Amaya wasn't the kid who had afternoon hangouts, she usually preferred the company of a good book. She never seemed to understand the girls at school, and she wasn't interested in boys either.

"What for?" Sara asked with a confused frown.

"Garry, invited me to some sort of board game thingy," She stuttered turning red. Amaya quickly turned away, stuffing her backpack in the closet. Sara had just gotten home from work to a rambunctious house. Ray -who must have overheard- snickered at his 'sister'.

"Is he your boyfriend?" He mocked. Amaya growled angrily and turned to him. But before she could do anything, the ten-year-old bolted away. She looked like she wanted to pursue but, Sara hadn't given her response yet, instead Amaya just shouted threats at him. The other kids gave them a look but just shrugged it off.

It took Sara a moment to recall who Gary was. Then she remembered the dweeby boy form the first day of school. He seemed like a good kid, but not someone Sara would have ever even talked to when she was in middle school.

"Will his mom be home?" She asked. That's what you're supposed to ask your kids, right? That's what Rip would always ask.

"Ya, she will be there," Amaya nodded. A memory bubbled into Sara's consciousness. Ava, that was her name, they had met at the first day of school, not so long ago. She was kind, a little bit formal, and surprisingly not much older than Sara herself. It would be nice to talk to her again.

"Okay then, sounds alright with me," Sara shrugged.

* * *

Crap, she was going to be late. Sara couldn't believe that she forgot about Amaya. Hopefully they were having so much fun she wouldn't notice. Sara drove slightly above the limit, to improve time. But, there was no one else with her so, who cares.

She pulled into the driveway of the address Amaya gave her. It was a quaint little house, with a pristine lawn. Everything was in order down to the tiniest detail. She parked the car and carefully stepped out. Was this the right place? Sara gave a quiet knock on the door, standing on the welcome mat, which didn't have a speck of dirt on it.

"Hello, you're Sara, right?" A young woman asked opening the door. Ava, had long brown hair and kind eyes.

"Yep, I'm here to pick her up," Sara replied with a smug smile. Ava showed her guest in. Somehow the inside of the house was even more orderly. Everything was perfectly organized and spotless. The carpets where whiter than snow, and the counters where practically sparkling. Yet strangely still felt cozy and snug. Like a warm marshmallow. Sara could hear faint voices coming from another room.

"They're still playing," Ava explained much to Sara's relief. Three kids circled around the living room table, Gary, Amaya, and a scruffy looking boy Sara hadn't seen before. They were huddled around some sort of book, with sheets of paper and dice spread about the table. Gary read aloud from the book like a narrator,

"The dragon fires a blow at the heroes!"

"I use a...erm...dodge!" Amaya responds tossing a strange looking dice. The scruffy boy gave out an excited shout seeing the number.

"You rolled a twelve, incredible!" He exclaimed in a thick British accent. Garry let out and awkward grin returning to the story. The group went without noticing the women until, Ava gave a loud cough.

"Aww, but we're almost done," whines Garry. The whole group looks over with a sad frown. They must have been really into whatever they were playing.

"Sara, could we stay a little while longer?" Amaya begged with her best impression of Ray's puppy-dog-eyes. She never has this fun, at people's houses. It would be a shame to stop it now.

"Okay, but at least try to hurry it up," said Sara in the most motherly voice she could manage. The teenagers grinned and turned back to the game at hand.

"Do you want something to drink, while you wait?" Ava offered politely. Sara just shook her head.

"I'm fine," She said as they strolled away. "Nice house, I can barely see the carpet of mine."

Ava laughed, "It's not that hard, Garry doesn't make much messes. But, I can understand with six children running around, how much of a pain that must be."

"They are quite a handful,"

"You seem to handle it well though, I can barely manage one," Ava sighed. In the light she looked awfully young and innocent. She wasn't that different from Sara herself, they both where just winging it day to day; keeping up appearances so no one knew how lost they were. Struggling just to stay above the waves of life.

"Trying is half the battle you know. If there's anything I've learned these past few years, it's that there's no perfect parent. No one has any idea what they're doing," Sara admitted. She had no idea why she was saying this, it just all came rushing out. It could have been because of how much Ava reminded Sara of herself, or it was just the words she needed to hear.

"I guess at the end of the day, if Garry is happy. You did a damn good job."

Ava stared to tear up and gave Sara a nod. Quickly she wiped the tears away. Sara smiled reassuringly at the young woman. So much could be said, but there was no need. They already knew.

With that over, the two chatted happily until it was finally time to leave. Sara wished they could have stayed a little longer but, she had to get home to the others. Amaya seemed to be elsewhere, her mind drifting as she gazed out the window.

"So, who was that British, boy?" Sara said trying to make conversation. Amaya looked up and shrugged.

"Oh, that's just John, he's kinda an oddball,"

"Well, do you like him?" Sara teased. When she was Amaya's age, it seemed all she ever thought about where boys.

"Eww, no, we're just friends. We hang out at lunch." Amaya explained turning red.

"Okay then. What where you playing? It didn't look like Monopoly,"

"I think it was called D&D, Garry likes it. It's one of those games where you make up a character and go on some quest." The teenager explained with wide hand gestures.

"Sounds like a nerd party." Sara snorted. Amaya burst out laughing.

"I guess it is, but it's actually really fun!"

"I'm glad, it always seems like you're you forget about yourself. You spend so much time on school and the others, with that big heart of yours sometimes you forget to stop and smell the roses," Sara explained. It was true, even though Amaya's tenancy to take care of everything around her made Sara's life easier, Sara worried about the thirteen-year-old.

"I know what you mean. It's just you do so much for all of us, I just feel like I should help you. You already have a lot of things to worry about on your plate, I don't want to add my problems, you know?" Amaya sighed.

"I know you do honey, and you do a wonderful job. But, you need to remember yourself,"

"I know; It felt nice to be a kid today," She smirked. "I should do it more often."

* * *

 **Sorry this took awhile, and** **isn't** **up to my usual standards. But I promise the next one will be better. Thanks for reading! And I'm always open to suggestions on possible stories or advice. Thank you! :D**

 **P.S Thank you for your support KrazyKanadian**


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